Theatre Review: Broad Comedy Confront Cruelty Veiled As Conservative

The Republican image has been divided between two tarnished looks.The first one of a wealthy, educated “uppity” person that believes in fiscal responsibility if it means the owner of the factory gets WAY more money than the one whom, actually, works in it. Then, there is the KKK lover who truly believes their heinous ideas of others’ races, religions, sexualities, and genders are facts you are stupidly ignoring. Yet, both interconnect on a dangerous level of non-compassion. Katie Goodman’s Broad Comedy may have a belly full of laughs, but beneath each a joke is a genuine fear; Where is “conservatism” leading humanity/ America.

Nowadays, there is a thin line between conservatism and plain cruelty, and Broad Comedy uses punch-lines to reveal it. While you may laugh at Goodman’s beautifully operatic voice, and tender odes to the mishaps of being a mom; there were certain songs that made me cringe with the hateful reality they were based upon, which is excellent. Comedy is an alternative education; hoping that, through people’s smiles, they take life more seriously. From The Extreme Right- Wing Cheerleading Squad to the ICE dance, there were many sketches that embraced the meanest, harshest stances of this government and made me scared. Sure, I could sway to the rhythms of this music comedy and laugh at the ludicrousness of this administration, but Goodman and Co. do well to assure you get a reality check.

I know you may not think, “Let me go to a comedy show that terrifies me!”, but Broad Comedy is a rare gem. Although it is smart and filled with giggles, its true “secret weapon” is its jovial atmosphere. From its very beginning, the Broad Cast go on over-drive to give and emanate joy, which makes you never lose your smile. Moreover, it eases you into their “truth-bombs” and ridiculously hilarious skits like, a world where heterosexuality is treated as strange or even sickening as LGBT’s or three vaginas discuss the difficulty of dating. Yet, the marvel of Broad Comedy, as a show, is its incredibly insightful, dark moments where music and laughs highlighted atrocity and inhumanity.

Everybody has a moment to sing and elaborate they are “tour de forces”, whom aim to steal that stage and confront injustice. Carlita Victoria sings the fear-inducing, but funny “NSA Gospel”, while Danielle Cohn does a simple track to spilling her coffee on her panties. Tana Sirois tells a conservative, bedtime story that SHOULD BE PUBLISHED, and Molly Kelleher managed to always steal the spotlight in group songs; whether they be about boobs or milfs. Thus, you will walk away loving the broads of Broad Comedy, but, more importantly, you will have an unwanted, but needed epiphany.

It seems like everyday you read the newspaper on how this administration is destroying our democracy and morality. It is as if you are in a slow-motion tragedy, and you wish that someone would either fast-forward to the end or rewind to before this “reality show” began. Yet, Broad Comedy delivers a refreshing challenger to the hopelessness of this current presidency, and makes you see there are so many ways to make your voice heard. From voting to creating a comedy troupe, a voice is powerful in displaying and fostering humanity. Why? Because one voice will forever spark another.

Broad Comedy is 90 minutes with no intermission. 
Located in The Soho Playhouse: 15 Vandam Street, New York City, NY 10013. Buy Tickets Here – Showtimes: